


Snow is overrated

by bunnysworld



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Chance Meetings, Christmas Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:07:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27776599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bunnysworld/pseuds/bunnysworld
Summary: Merlin's car breaks down and of course the battery of his mobile is dead, too. As he trudges along the road through the thawing snow, a car pulls up and a friendly stranger offers help.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 28
Kudos: 90
Collections: Merlin Holidays 2020





	Snow is overrated

**Author's Note:**

  * For [221B_Marauder](https://archiveofourown.org/users/221B_Marauder/gifts).



> Dear 221B_Marauder,  
> I had so much fun playing with your prompts and I hope that you like what came out of it. I hope you're having wonderful holiday and all the best for the New Year!
> 
> Thanks to the mods for once again hosting the fest and to my wonderful beta who makes them speak proper English. Anything that is still in there is totally my fault.

This is just horrible. Utterly disgusting. And cold. 

Merlin pulled his beanie a bit lower over his eyes as the trudged through the wet, melting snow. Of course, it had to be that one day of winter they got around here that he had to take care of the library at the other end of the district. Of course, his car had to break down in the middle of nowhere. And OF COURSE, the battery of his mobile had to die on him right there and then. 

He hadn’t been to this part of the district in ages, so he had no idea if he was closer to the last little town he passed or the next one and he hadn’t noticed if there had been a gas station in the last place he had been driving through. It wasn’t that he was low on gas, he had filled the car up before he started this trip. If he were a member of some automobile club, he could have called them for help, but he had decided against spending the money for a membership and…his phone didn’t work anyway. So he set out for the next village, hoping that he would at least find someone who’d let him use their phone or knew someone who could help with the car. 

Merlin kicked against a lump of snow on the ground, which immediately added to the wetness of his boots and the coldness of his feet. He knew he should have gotten rid of the old car a long time ago, but he didn’t need to drive very often. He lived right next to the library and the town was so small that he was able to walk to the store for his grocery shopping. Most of the other things he needed, he ordered online, so no driving was involved there either. And he didn’t need much anyway. 

How far was this stupid little town away? It felt like he had been hiking along the road for ages, but there were still no houses or at least lights to be seen. And why weren’t there any cars on the road? The work day was about to start, shouldn’t there be people commuting?

As he stomped on, Merlin wished, he could at least listen to some music, but…his mobile. If he had enough battery left to listen to his favorite tunes, he wouldn’t be stomping along the road in the first place and had used the phone to call for help. He had worked himself so much in a funk that he didn’t hear the car coming. 

A dark SUV pulled up next to him and the side window slid down without a noise. 

“Do you need help?”

Merlin startled and then looked over. Under other circumstances he might have gone into a rant about SUVs and how unnecessary they were and carbon footprint and all. But the blond man looked friendly and he was the only one around, so… “Oh…err…hi. If I could borrow your phone for a moment? I could call car service and…”

The man laughed. “So that old clunker I passed back there is yours?”

Nobody called his beloved car an old clunker! “It’s a good car!”

“If it were working…come on, get on in. I’ll take you to the township and we’ll see what we can do.”

“Err….a phone call would suffice.” The man looked friendly enough, but he was a stranger and if his mam had taught him one thing it was not to get into cars with strangers. Merlin almost chuckled. He wasn’t five anymore. 

“If you want to catch your death…” The man shrugged, reached for his phone and unlocked it. 

The wet sludge that was a sorry excuse for snow came down harder and Merlin already felt it on the skin of his shoulders. He opened the door. “Maybe I can….” He held his head into the car and reached for the phone. 

Later, he didn’t really know how it happened but there was bad reception and a lot of arguing about climbing on the leather seat with his soggy clothes, but a while later, Merlin leaned back into the soft seat and enjoyed the stream of warm air coming from the ventilation. 

“So, what were you doing on this road at this ungodly hour?”

“Going to work. And I could ask you the same.”

The man laughed. “Late night after meetings in London. I didn’t realize it was so late when I got out of the restaurant.”

“You could have stayed in London? I’m sure they would have given you a room, no matter how late it was.” Merlin peeked over. If the car and the bloke’s clothes were anything to go by, money wasn’t an issue for him. 

“I could have. I rather wanted to go home.” The man shrugged and turned into a small street that Merlin wouldn’t even have recognized. 

He looked around. “I thought we were going to the next town?” This was starting to get creepy and Merlin tried to recall all the things he learned in the self-defense class Gwen made him take with her. 

“My house is closer. You can warm up, we’ll arrange for your car to be towed and fixed and we’ll have you on the road in no time.”

That sounded heavenly. Merlin checked the clock on the car’s dashboard. “I should call work, so they know why I won’t be coming either.”

“Either?”

“Co-worker got sick, so I was supposed to take over. Guess that’s not going to happen today.”

They drove up a long driveway and pulled up at a house that could be called a little castle. 

“I’m not in the middle of a horror movie now, am I?” Merlin looked at the house. 

The man laughed. “No, don’t worry. We might have a ghost or two, but other than that, nothing has happened in this house for centuries.”

Merlin slowly climbed out of the car. He hated to have to leave the warmth behind and step out into the cold again, but he followed the man to the door and sighed in relief as it was just as warm inside the house.

A butler rushed over the moment they closed the door behind them. “Your coat, Sir?”

Staring, Merlin peeled his soggy jacket off his shoulders and handed it over as he tried to toe his boots off at the same time. A butler. That would need a while to sink in. Who on Earth had a butler?

“Jameson can show you to the guest bathroom, so you can take a shower…or a bath if that is more to your liking, so you can warm up.”

It wasn’t a question and Merlin didn’t object. He had no idea where he was, who these people were, but a hot shower sounded heavenly right now. “A shower would be great.”

The butler made a gesture to follow him and showed him the bathroom. 

“Fresh towels are over here.” He pointed without even really pointing. “Please leave your wet…” He looked him up and down and it was clear that he disapproved of Merlin’s outfit. Or he disapproved of him in general, that was hard to tell. “…clothes on the floor. We will take care of them.”

“But then…I won’t have anything to wear.”

“Of course we will provide you with garments.”

Then he left him alone and Merlin looked around. This bathroom was bigger than his entire living room. Would there be an echo if he shouted ‘Hello’? And what had he gotten himself into? This was more and more like a scenario from a creepy horror movie. Letting himself be picked up on a dark road, trustingly coming along to a total stranger’s house…how dumb could you be? He should have insisted on using the phone and then waited by his car for the service people. 

A hot shower was tempting, though, and after locking the door…you never knew…Merlin shed his cold, wet clothes and stepped into a shower that seemed to be as big as his entire kitchen. It felt wonderful, though, to get rid of the damp, icy feeling that had taken over. Slowly, he warmed up, standing under the spray a lot longer than he usually would have. 

When he finally decided that it was time to get out, a set of clothes had miraculously appeared. Merlin hadn’t heard or seen anyone coming in, but he was grateful that he didn’t need to get back into his own clothes. 

The sweatpants and hoodie were a bit too big for him, but he didn’t care. They were soft and smelled nice and they were warm. Of course they were from a brand that Merlin only had heard about. These sweatpants probably cost more than he earned in a month. There was also fresh underwear and socks that still had the tag on them. Toweling his hair, Merlin took a deep breath. What would the owner of these clothes expect in exchange? He would ask to use the phone immediately, so work would know that he wasn’t coming and he probably should call Percy to pick him up. When you first met Percy, you didn’t know that he was just a big teddy bear and most people were quite intimidated by him, so that would probably leave an impression.

The moment Merlin stepped out of the bathroom and opened the door of the adjacent bedroom, the butler appeared again.

“The young master is expecting you in the sitting room.”

“The young master…” This got more mysterious by the moment. “Who is he? Jameson…can I call you Jameson? Where am I?”

The butler didn’t answer and led him through a labyrinth of hallways and stairs before he finally opened a door with a grand gesture. “Sir, your…guest is here.”

Oh yes, just show your disapproval of everything I am again. Merlin couldn’t help but rolling his eyes and blushed a little when the blond man caught him and grinned. 

“Thank you, Jameson. You can serve breakfast now.” He turned to Merlin. “Do you prefer tea or coffee?”

“Tea would be great. And…could I use the phone?”

“Of course.” The blond man gestured towards a couch that looked so comfy that Merlin wanted to move in. 

Merlin took the phone from the little end table and first dialed the work number. “Alice? Yes, it’s me, Merlin…yes, I know…yes, let me…Alice, my car broke down…” That seemed to stop Alice’s rant about him now showing up on time. “I’m at…” He looked at the blond man.

“Camelot Mansion.” The blond provided.

“I’m at Camelot Mansion. Yes…it’s warm here and they are even going to feed me breakfast.” Jameson just came in to announce that the meal was waiting. “I’ll call car services right now, but I doubt I’ll make it today…yes, that can’t be helped. Uh huh…yes…alright.”

When he hung up, the blond man handed him a mug of steaming hot tea. “How impolite of me to not even introduce myself. I’m Arthur and…welcome to Camelot Mansion.”

“Merlin,” Merlin provided. “This is a huge house.”

Arthur laughed. “After centuries, they still haven’t agreed on whether it’s a house or a castle.”

He didn’t specify who ‘they’ were and Merlin gestured to the phone again. “Can I call a friend, so he can pick me up?”

“Of course, but I doubt anyone will go outside in this weather.” He gestured towards the huge windows. The sludge had turned into snow and it was coming down hard. “But let your friends know where you are, so they don’t worry.”

Merlin called, but of course Percy was at work at this time of day, so he left him a message.

“Would you join me for breakfast?” Arthur asked after Merlin hung up again.

Actually wanting to refuse and tell him he would just sit here and wait for Percy to call back, Merlin’s stomach grumbled right on time to not call him a liar. 

“I reckon this answers the question.” The blond grinned and gestured for Merlin to follow him. 

Another huge room with a long table that was too big for just one person opened up to view. “You must have a big family.”

Arthur just threw him a look. “No, it is just me.”

“Oh…sorry…” Merlin was saved by Jameson inquiring about eggs. “However they come,” he answered but by the look on the butler’s face that wasn’t the correct answer. “Scrambled?”

When he was gone, Arthur chuckled. “Don’t let him intimidate you. I kind of inherited him from my father, so he’s still a bit stuck in the last century.”

Merlin looked around. “So you inherited this place?”

“It’s usually how people my age get houses like this.”

“So you’re an earl or a duke or something?” Merlin didn’t even think before he spoke and stopped when he saw the look on Arthur’s face.

“Something.” He nodded.

Breakfast was dished up before them and Merlin’s stomach once again gave him away. He usually wasn’t big on breakfast, but he had to get up so early that his stomach probably thought it was already noon. 

“Enjoy.” Arthur made an encouraging gesture. 

Mmm…this was good. He hadn’t had a home-made breakfast in a while and whoever had made this knew what they were doing. 

“You said you were on your way to work?”

“Mhmmm,” Merlin nodded, his mouth too full with scrambled eggs to answer. He swallowed to answer. “Yes, I was going to take over for Ken over in Mardina. Guess, the library will stay closed for today.”

“You’re a librarian?”

“Kind of. I never studied to be a librarian, but you know, majored in literature, love books…one thing led to another and now I’m working in a library.”

“You might like ours.” Arthur smiled. 

Merlin wondered if this was just an aristocratic thing or if there were, even though Arthur had said he lived here on his own, other people around to use the library. 

“I…I should call the car services and then…get my clothes back and wait for them to pick me up.”

“Leon has already contacted them. Unfortunately, in this weather, they won’t come out, but you are the first on the list once it clears up again.”

Merlin had no idea who Leon was. “Guess…I’m stuck here. Sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’m always happy to have guests.”

Merlin didn’t miss the astonished look on Jameson’s face. “So you do this often? Pick up strangers at the curb side?” He laughed.

Arthur looked over. “No, not really. But there was something about you, trudging so defiantly through the melting snow that I had to offer help.” He folded his napkin and got up. “If you’d excuse me now, I really need a bit of sleep.”

“Oh, true, you pulled an all-nighter.” Merlin quickly finished his tea.

“Feel free to use the pool downstairs or the gym or explore the library.”

Merlin got up and looked after Arthur. If this whole situation wasn’t so weird, he would admit that his host was a real looker. 

+++

Under the watchful eyes of Jameson, Merlin had found the library. The pool had sounded very tempting – Merlin didn’t know anyone who had an actual pool ‘downstairs’ – but when he left his place in what had felt like the middle of the night, he would have never guessed that he might have to use his swim trunks, so they were in the back of his closet, where they always were after summer. 

The butler, even though still showing his disapproval clearly, had served him more tea and then Merlin was left alone to explore books that were obviously a lot older than him. Sometimes it wasn’t so much the content that put a smile on Merlin’s face or let him handle the book with utmost respect. It was just the sheer age and loving craftsmanship that thrilled him. 

“I see that our library managed to hold your attention.”

Merlin startled when his host approached. He had been reading a few pages in one of the old tomes and forgotten the world around him. “Oh, err…hi. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, thank you. I thought I might find you here.”

Looking at the blond expectantly, Merlin thought he would get some info on the car services or something.

But he just shrugged apologetically. “I’m sorry, no further news on your car. May I join you here?”

“Sure.” Merlin sat up a bit straighter. “So…,” he needed to address this right away. “You are being so generous, how can I repay you?”

Arthur laughed. “There is no need to do that.” He threw him a look. “You don’t feel safe here?”

Now it was Merlin’s turn to shrug. “It’s just…someone else might have let me wait in the entrance for someone to pick me up and you…” He made a gesture towards the clothes and the surroundings.

“It’s just that you are stuck here for the weekend. You can barely stay in the draughty entrance the entire weekend. Feel free to contact your friend regularly.”

Merlin felt oddly drawn to this man. There didn’t seem to be false in his words. “I’m…I’m sorry.”

There was a little silence between them before Arthur started. “Tell me a bit about yourself.”

“What do you want to know? I’m Merlin Emrys, 34, work in a library. I live in Ealdor and…” He shrugged. “I’m kind of boring, I suppose.”

Arthur laughed. “What are you doing in Ealdor when you’re not working?”

They were in a vivid conversation, exchanging opinions about yoga and football pretty quickly and Merlin found, he had a good time. They could laugh about the same weird things and Arthur seemed to understand his sometimes odd kind of humour. He jumped when Jameson came in and switched on the lights as it was getting dark outside. How could this guy sneak up on them like this? 

“Dinner will be served in half an hour.” He announced.

Arthur nodded. “Thank you.”

Merlin looked after the butler. “How does he do it?”

“What?”

“Be so creepy.” He gasped. He hadn’t meant to put it that way, but that’s what Jameson was, creepy.

Laughing, Arthur threw his head back. “I’m going to tell you a secret. As a kid, I was so afraid of him and convinced that he was a Halloween creature and not of this world.”

“A ghost or something.” Merlin nodded.

“Nobody was more surprised than me when I found out that he indeed was just human.”

“If he…” Merlin blinked. “He must be quite old if he was already here when you were a kid.”

“As I said, I kind of inherited him from my father. He should have retired last year, but he’s kind of stubborn.” Arthur shrugged.

When Jameson came back to announce that dinner was being served, his face showed his dismay.

Merlin leaned over to Arthur and whispered, “What did we do wrong?”

Arthur leaned in again as well. “We didn’t get changed for dinner.”

Blinking, Merlin frowned. “That’s really a thing?”

“It is, but I found out a long time ago that meals are usually delicious, no matter what you are wearing.” He laughed when he saw Merlin’s confused face. “What?”

“This gives me a Downton Abbey feeling…”

That made Arthur laugh even more as they walked to the dining room, which of course earned them a raised eyebrow from Jameson again. 

+++

Eating here was like going to a restaurant Merlin would never be able to afford. He refrained from rubbing his belly, but had a contented smile on his face. 

“Please give the kitchen my compliments.” He had heard that sentence in a movie and never thought he would use it. 

Jameson just nodded as he took the plates away.

“So,” Arthur smiled. “What would you like to do now?”

“I don’t know.”

“Let me rephrase. What would you do if you were at home after dinner?”

Merlin chuckled. “I’d probably have had dinner in front of TV and then…” He shrugged. “I’d most likely would have fallen asleep watching some kitschy Christmas movie.”

“Christmas movie…” Arthur looked as if the thought had never even occurred to him.

“Yeah, you know…two people hating on Christmas being thrown together and in the end they get their happily ever after? Something like that. What do you usually do after dinner?”

“Me? Oh, I usually do some work that I didn’t get to finish before, make a few calls, have a whiskey in the sitting room and then go to bed way too late.”

Merlin made a face. “Work? After dinner? Dinner marks the end of the day and the start of the evening.”

“So?”

“You don’t do work after dinner. It’s your time to wind down and relax from a day full of work.”

“So you’re suggesting, I should try those Christmas movies out?”

Merlin looked around. “You do have Netflix here, don’t you?”

Arthur looked at him. “Net…flix?”

“You can’t be stuck so far in the past!” Merlin giggled.

“You mean…something like…betamax and fax machines?” Arthur couldn’t keep the serious expression on his face any longer and grinned widely. “Of course we have Netflix here. Do you really think anyone would work out of reach of wifi and pay TV these days?” When he saw Merlin’s look, he added. “And yes, I might have watched a show or two as well.”

Merlin didn’t know what he had expected after this announcement, but the cozy room with a giant projection system was definitely not it. The technical equipment was top notch and the latest the market had to offer. “Wow.”

“Don’t get the wrong idea, I can do video conferences from here as well.”

“Too much work, too little fun.” Merlin muttered underneath his breath and waited for Arthur to claim his seat on the big couch. All his friends had their own spot on their respective couches and so did he. He hated when someone barged in and sat in his seat. 

“What was that?”

“Nothing.” Merlin grinned. It wasn’t his to say something like that. Arthur had been nothing but friendly, but somehow it felt like he would enjoy a bit of banter as well. 

“You know…I was about to call for hot chocolate and cookies, but after that remark…” Arthur pretended to be busy with the remote control.

“I didn’t say anything.” Merlin tried the wide-eyed innocent look. 

The door opened and a young woman appeared. She curtsied and put a tray on the little coffee table. Then she curtsied again and left.

Merlin just stared. That was still a thing? He knew it from old-fashioned movies, but this was the 21st century.

“Something wrong?” Arthur held out a mug to Merlin.

Reaching for the mug absent-mindedly, Merlin still looked at the door where the woman had appeared and vanished. “That’s…whoa…”

Arthur shrugged. “I tried to make it clear that gestures like those aren’t necessary anymore, but they still keep doing it.” He looked at the big screen. “So…will it work when I type in ‘kitschy Christmas movie’?”

Laughing, Merlin finally turned back to him. “I think ‘Christmas’ will do.”

Even Merlin was surprised at how many offers they got. 

“Which one?”

“Oh, I don’t care, they’re pretty much all the same anyway.” Merlin tucked a foot underneath his other leg and got comfy in his corner of the couch. 

“This one?”

“Nah, I don’t like the prince.”

“You’re right…how about this one?”

“That looks better.” Merlin chuckled and sipped his hot chocolate. 

+++

Almost two hours later, the commoner girl who had gotten access to the palace on some weird mix-up had won the heart of the prince of a made-up kingdom in a part of the word that Merlin was pretty sure was part Greece. He felt Arthur looking at him.

“What?”

“So this is what you do to…” Arthur made a helpless gesture.

“Escape reality once in a while?” Merlin shoved the rest of the cookie into his mouth that he had just bitten into. “Get into a Christmas-y mood?” He mumbled around the cookie.

“Isn’t this every little girl’s dream? To marry a prince?”

“Wasn’t it yours when you grew up?” The moment the question had left Merlin’s mouth, his eyes went wide. He hadn’t meant to…. “I mean…”

To his surprise, Arthur laughed. “Not really. When you’re surrounded by people with titles of nobility…” He shrugged. “It’s nothing special. Unless you have a real kingdom to rule, you’re more or less nothing more but a businessman. And I think I never got close enough to a prince to consider marrying him.”

Merlin blinked. “So you’re…”

“…someone who inherited a title. It means nothing and comes with a lot of duties.” Arthur smiled sadly but then seemed to catch himself. He grinned. “No chance of ever ruling the kingdom.”

Not knowing what he should have replied to this, Merlin nibbled on another cookie. “So you’re an Earl or a Duke or something and have to work in London?”

“I wish I could tell you that I don’t _have_ to work, but I do. I have a huge house and staff to keep it running. Someone has to pay for that and since there is nobody else….”

If he were honest, Merlin had never given much thought about this. He had grown up in a small town and nobody he knew even had staff in their house, much less a title. Of course he had seen the big, old mansions in the countryside, but had never questioned how people kept them running. 

“And you…have you ever dreamt of marrying your prince? Or princess?” Arthur pulled him out of his thoughts.

Laughing, Merlin shrugged. “Small-town boy meets the handsome prince of his dreams…of course I have dreamt of that!....When I was eleven or so.” 

Arthur threw him a look before he looked at the remote control. “Do you think they do have Christmas movies where the small-town boy meets the handsome prince of his dreams?”

“Sadly, I doubt it. There should be more boy meets prince movies.” Merlin grinned.

“You’re right. Maybe then I’d have known about those movies.” Arthur smiled back.

Over discussing if they should watch another one of those movies and pretending the commoner girl was actually a young man, they laughed a lot and it got late.

+++

Merlin stretched and yawned. Where was he? How late was it? He blinked and looked around. Oh, it was true, he was stuck in Camelot Mansion which felt like a luxury spa vacation so far. It had been rather late when they decided to call it a night. Merlin could have talked with Arthur until the sun came up again. 

A quick blinking towards the windows of his huge room showed that it was light, but it was grey and overcast and looked quite nasty. So Percy would probably not be able to come get him today either. Merlin didn’t think he minded too much. 

Slowly, he pushed himself up. Turning over and putting in another one or two hours of sleep might not have been the worst idea, but hadn’t Arthur mentioned an indoor pool? 

When he came back from the bathroom, there was a pile of neatly folded clothes on one of the cushioned little benches underneath the window. There were his own clothes and an assortment of other things. He was sure the garments had been there when he stumbled into the room at around two in the morning, but he had ignored it. 

There were gym clothes and Merlin’s face lit up when he found a pair of swim trunks. He got dressed quickly, took the soft bathrobe from the bathroom, tossed a towel over his shoulder and padded down the corridor, only now realizing that he had no idea where to find the pool.

Merlin looked around. There were people working in this house, but where were they when you needed them? Not even Jameson, who seemed to have the habit of sneaking up on him, was anywhere in sight. 

When he had found the entrance hall, feeling slightly odd in his bathrobe, he saw some men trying to bring a giant tree inside. Jameson ushered them here and there, scolding them for being too careless, fearing they would destroy something. 

Merlin stood on the stairs, watching the goings-on. 

“Mr. Emrys!” Jameson exclaimed when he noticed him. “Is there anything I can help you with?” 

The butler gave him a once-over and again Merlin felt like under the microscope. “Actually…Arthur mentioned a pool and I wondered where to find it?”

“Of course. If you’d follow me, please.” Jameson turned to the men with the tree. “Careful!”

“I don’t want to interrupt. If you just tell me where to go, I’m sure I’ll find it. You are busy here with the tree.” Merlin smiled what he hoped was his most winning smile. 

Just then, the young woman who had brought them the hot chocolate the previous night, hurried through the entrance hall.

“Lucy here will show you.” Jameson was already busy ordering the men around. 

The woman smiled at Merlin and curtsied. “What can I do for you, Sir?”

“I’m Merlin. Don’t…you don’t need to do that. I was just looking for the pool?”

She gestured to the other side of the entrance hall and started to walk in that direction. “You are a guest of the young master and therefore to be treated as such.”

Merlin followed. It still felt weird that this house and everyone in it but Arthur had this period-drama feeling to it. “I’m sure he won’t mind if you don’t do that. And I don’t want to keep you from what you were actually trying to do.” 

Lucy seemed to relax a bit. “It’s Jameson, he forces us to do such old-fashioned things.” She looked as if she said something that she shouldn’t have. “But I’m sure he only has Master Arthur’s best interests in mind.”

Before Merlin could come up with anything to say, they had reached the bottom of the stairs they walked down. There was already the typical smell of chlorine in the air that announced that a pool was close-by.

“This door takes you to the changing room.” Lucy curtsied quickly.

“Thank you so much. This house is so big that I’d get lost all the time.”

“After a while you know where to go.” She smiled. “Enjoy your swim.”

“Thank you.” Merlin opened the indicated door and stepped in.

This pool was larger than any private pool Merlin had ever seen. Then again, most of the private pools he had seen were paddling pools in the tiny gardens of his friends’ houses. He hung up his bath robe and tied the waistband of the swim trunks a bit tighter, before he dove into the water.

This was heavenly! Merlin was a strong swimmer but the only chance he ever got to get into the water was on hot summer days when he could close the library early enough to make it to the public pool the next town over. He swam a few laps and then just floated on the water, admiring the view out of the floor-length windows that gave way to the sight of the wintery park-like garden. 

Backstroke wasn’t his favorite discipline, but he did a few laps in that style, too, when he noticed Arthur standing at the glass wall to what seemed to be the gym. How long had he been standing there for already? Merlin couldn’t tell, he had been busy enjoying the water. 

Arthur wiped his sweaty face with a towel and then mouthed “Breakfast?”

Merlin nodded and pulled himself up on the edge of the pool. The exercise had been just what he needed to work up an appetite. 

+++

Merlin found the way back to his room, took a quick shower and got dressed. He had no idea what he should do after breakfast, but he would probably go back to the library. There was still so much to discover. 

When he crossed the entrance hall, some of the staff were busy putting fairy lights on the tree. Maybe he would offer his help when he was done with breakfast. He loved to trim Christmas trees.

Arthur was already waiting for him at the breakfast table. 

“Oh, sorry, am I late?”

“Not at all.” Arthur gestured to a chair and Merlin slid into it. “Did you enjoy your swim?”

“You’re so lucky! An indoor pool all for yourself! If I had a pool like that in my basement, I’d probably never leave there again!”

Arthur chuckled. “I take that as a yes. Father had it installed when his doctors recommended swimming. We had it remodeled not too long ago.”

“It looks a lot like a spa area.” Merlin reached for the toast and helped himself to two slices. “Like my entire time here feels like a luxury spa stay.”

Laughing, Arthur handed a delicate looking porcelain container over that held the butter. “I can’t offer you facials or pedicures, though.”

Merlin ran a hand over the stubble on his face. “Do I look like I need one?” He grinned.

“You look fine.” It seemed as if Arthur stopped himself after saying this. 

Blushing a little bit, Merlin stuffed the rest of his toast into his mouth. Did Arthur mean it that way? 

“So, what would you like to do today?”

Blinking, he looked over. “What do you mean?”

“I thought…” Arthur folded his napkin and put it next to his cup. “We had a lot of fun watching movies last night and I hoped that you would like to spend some time with me today as well.” 

It sounded a bit like a question and Arthur looked anywhere but at him. 

“I’d…I’d love to.” It was true, Merlin had a lot of fun the previous night and he wouldn’t mind spending more time with Arthur. 

“So…what will it be?” Arthur smiled widely.

Merlin pondered. He had no idea what amenities this mansion held other than those he had already see and hoped that Arthur would offer some suggestions. But he just looked at him expectantly. “How about…we help decorate the huge tree in the entrance?”

There was a bit of confusion on Arthur’s face. “Decorate…the tree?”

“Yes, the huge one that those people have brought in when I was on the way to the pool. They were putting some fairy lights when I came here for breakfast.”

Arthur blinked. “But they are a company that decorate the tree.”

“You…” Merlin blinked back, “You hire people to decorate your Christmas tree? Where’s the fun in that?”

“Well, I have a professionally decorated tree and don’t have to worry about anything.”

“But…it’s not your tree then. You have to decorate it or else it’s just a tree!” Merlin insisted. How odd! His favorite part of Christmas was trimming the tree together with his mam each year. 

Arthur seemed to ponder. “I…I don’t think I’ve ever decorated a Christmas tree myself. I wouldn’t even know what to do.”

Merlin jumped up. “It’s easy! Let me show you!”

Drinking the rest of his coffee, Arthur got up. “How about…we let the company decorate the big tree in the entrance and start with the smaller one in the sitting room?”

He was already at the door but then stopped in his tracks. Slowly, Merlin turned around and stared. “You have more than one Christmas tree?”

“Well…yes. Doesn’t everyone?”

“Err…no? My place, for example, isn’t big enough for more than one tree and I even have to pick a small one.”

“Oh.”

Obviously it was a thought that was totally alien to Arthur, but after a moment, he nodded. “Alright, let us start the lesson.”

“Christmas tree decorating for beginners.” Merlin grinned and followed Arthur into the sitting room. 

+++

“No, not these!” Arthur almost jumped when Merlin took some delicate vintage glass baubles out of their box.

“Why? What’s wrong with these?”

When they had entered the room, the tree was already there and someone had put the fairy lights up, so all they had to do was add the decoration. Merlin told stories about Christmas at his house and the weird mixture of things he put on the tree, each single one holding some kind of memory of a special place or someone dear to him. Arthur just listened and once in a while asked about certain people when Merlin once again spoke as if everybody knew who he was referring to. 

They took the baubles the company had provided and Merlin showed Arthur how to put them on the tree and reminded him once in a while that they needed to step back and take a look, so as to not put too many of them on one side and then not have any left for the other. Even though, by now, Merlin doubted that there ever was a lack of anything in Arthur’s life. 

A small box with the vintage baubles had been on a sideboard, as if they didn’t belong with the rest of the decorations.

“Nothing…” Arthur swallowed. “There’s nothing wrong with them, they just stay in the box.”

“But why? They are so beautiful. Just look at them, they need to be on display and they match perfectly with the new ones.” Merlin looked questioningly at Arthur.

“Please put them back. I just couldn’t stand if one of them broke.”

Carefully, Merlin put the one he was holding back into the box. He had no idea what story was behind them and it wasn’t his to ask. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Arthur shook his head. “You couldn’t know they belonged to my mother.”

Arthur looked so lost that Merlin felt like going over and giving him a hug, but then he remembered they had only known each other for about 24 hours. 

Arthur swallowed hard. “She passed away when I was born. I don’t have much of what was hers.”

“I’m sorry about that. But don’t you think she would have loved if you put the baubles up? A part of her could be with you on Christmas.”

Taking a deep breath, Arthur looked at the other ones. “We still have the new ones to put up. Decorating a tree is hard work.”

+++

They were busy for quite a while until Arthur declared the tree was done. It might not have been perfectly decorated like the one in the entrance hall, but it wasn’t too bad either. 

“So…do you like it?” Merlin smiled. After that little slump that had taken over their conversation when he took the special baubles, they had talked about this and that again and hadn’t even noticed how late it had gotten.

“I would have never thought that I’d feel so accomplished.” Arthur chuckled. “And now we should probably go have lunch before Jameson tells on us.”

Merlin laughed. “Who would he tell on us to?”

They laughed and bantered all through lunch.

“I feel stuffed, I think I need a walk.” Merlin rubbed his belly.

“If you want to, I can show you the park that’s behind the house?” 

Nodding, Merlin got up. It felt as if there wasn’t only some kind of park behind the house but all around it, too. They had been driving through woods for quite a while when he came here the previous day. “Let me get my boots and coat.”

When they met again in the entrance hall, the company was still busy decorating the big tree, Merlin was in his old clothes and shivered when he saw Arthur standing there in thick winter boots and a warm coat with the logo of a really expensive outdoors company. 

“Oh, I didn’t know we were going that far.” He grinned.

Arthur gave him a confused look. “What do you mean?”

“You look like you’re equipped for a trip to the north pole.” 

“I just dressed for the weather.”

Merlin nudged him with his elbow. “Or maybe you’re just a fragile little creature that will freeze his little bottom off if he sets foot outside the house in winter.”

Behind them, someone gasped and a large bauble crashed on the ground. 

“Let’s go before we shock them even more.” Merlin ducked his head and headed for the door. 

They walked outside for about two hours and Merlin enjoyed how Arthur showed him some nice spots that could be found at this time of the year. They watched a squirrel running up and down a tree and Merlin’s ears were almost ringing from the silence. 

“What?” Arthur threw him a sideways look.

Merlin shrugged. “It’s so…I don’t know…so peaceful. If I weren’t stuck here, I would most likely shop for presents or wrap those that I already have and try to bake cookies or clean my place or something to fill my time. Here, I can just…breathe.”

Arthur nodded. “That’s why I didn’t sell the place. I love being in London, in the middle of the action, but I also love coming back here to get away from it all. If that makes sense.”

“Weirdly, it does.” Merlin smiled and stopped to take in the view. 

“Would you pack a lot of presents?”

“What?” Merlin, who had been gazing into the distance, almost startled and then laughed. “Some. For my mam, for my friends…you know.”

“For Percy?”

First, Merlin frowned, but yes, Arthur had been in the room when he called Percy to let him know where he was. “Of course there is one for my best friend, too.”

Arthur seemed to exhale. 

“I thought we figured out last night that I don’t have a special someone.” Merlin teased. “When we wanted to produce all these commoner-boy-meets-prince-of-kingdom movies.”

“True…it’s just…it’s kind of sad that someone like you would be alone for Christmas.”

Merlin threw Arthur a sideways look. “Someone like me?”

“Yes, you are…” Arthur shrugged, “You seem to be a genuinely nice person. It’s just odd that nobody snatched you yet.”

Making a non-committal gesture, Merlin walked on. “Thank you, but…I have a tendency to attract all the idiots.”

Arthur chuckled, but didn’t ask further. Why had he asked in the first place? Was it…. Merlin threw him glances and hoped he wouldn’t notice…was Arthur interested in him? But that couldn’t be, he was just a little librarian from a small town and Arthur had a noble title, a huge mansion and staff. 

When it started snowing again, they returned to the house about two hours later and shed their jackets and boots before Arthur invited him to yet another room he hadn’t seen for some hot chocolate to warm up again. 

They never interrupted their conversation and had some good, serious talks as well as some quite silly banter, which Merlin absolutely enjoyed. 

When Arthur excused himself for a moment, Merlin went to the big windows and looked outside. The snow had decided to return again, but it looked as it if were big, wet flakes that just splashed down. It looked like it was thawing. 

“See anything interesting?”

He hadn’t heard Arthur coming back again but noticed he didn’t mind that he stood behind him and really close, trying to peek outside as well. All he saw was Arthur’s reflection in the window. “Yes, I think I do.” Merlin swallowed and blushed a little. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud!

“Good…that’s very good.”

“Yes, I…” Merlin turned a bit and was now face to face with Arthur. The man was gorgeous.

Slowly leaning in, Arthur closed the space between them, but seemed to hesitate. It was almost like he waited for Merlin’s reaction.

Merlin chuckled nervously as he, too, came closer. “Is this the moment where I have to repay you for you giving me shelter?”

Arthur’s face fell and took a step back. “That’s…I’m sorry, no. I thought you…”

Rolling his eyes, Merlin reached for the front of Arthur’s jumper, grabbed him and pulled him close. “Come here, clotpole.”

The kiss was glorious. Merlin had been out of practice for a while, but it felt as if nobody ever kissed him like that. Arthur kissed like a drowning man and Merlin didn’t mind one bit to go under with him. 

When they finally broke for air, Arthur closed his eyes and didn’t move.

“Was that…are you okay?” Merlin didn’t know what was going on. Had it been the wrong thing to do?

Arthur swallowed hard and then looked at him. “I’m…a bit out of practice…I haven’t been with anyone for quite a while.”

“Wouldn’t have noticed that…I…” Merlin gave him a crooked smile. “I really liked that.”

“So…where do we take it from here?” Arthur cleared his throat. “It’s…please never feel like you have to repay something. You are welcome in this house and even though pure chance got us together this weekend, you are free to do whatever you want.”

Merlin chuckled. “I’m not a fragile damsel in distress, you know?”

“Well, you looked quite like a damsel in distress when you were trudging down the road.” A twinkle came back to Arthur’s eyes.

“Just not a fragile one.” Merlin insisted. “I have a black belt in…”

Arthur waited, his face showing how amused he was now. 

“Damn, couldn’t come up with something.” Merlin laughed before he got serious again. “Never think you could force me into doing something I don’t want.”

“So…you wanted this…”

Nodding, Merlin leaned in. “I did. And I want it again.” He kissed Arthur thoroughly.

+++

It was odd. Merlin had felt something between them since he came here and it was wonderful that they spent the majority of the evening kissing. It was as if this room with the cozy fireplace was made just for slow necking. Sometimes, they interrupted to tell each other something about themselves or ask the other a question. He knew their time was limited, but he still didn’t feel in a hurry to go all the way. The tension was in the air, but they both took it slow. 

“So…,” Merlin nuzzled into Arthur’s neck. 

“So?” Arthur tilted his head to give Merlin better access.

Pulling back slightly, Merlin looked at Arthur. “As I will be here until Monday morning…what are we going to do?”

Arthur chuckled. “We could decorate more trees….”

Merlin stopped the banter. “You have even more trees in this house? Isn’t that a bit too much?”

Laughing, Arthur pulled him close again. “The staff can have their own trees if they want to, but they get to decorate them themselves. And no, the one in the entrance hall and the one we mutilated are the only ones. But we could…I don’t know…go for a swim together? Or use the sauna?”

“You…you have a sauna in this house? Why does something like that even surprise me?”

“If I could let go of you now, I would give you a tour of the house, which I shamefully forgot when you came here.”

Merlin snuggled closer. “We could do that tomorrow?”

“It’s just an old mansion, but if you want to…”

“I don’t get to be in old mansions so often and this ‘just an old mansion’ has a pool and a gym and a sauna, a private movie theatre…so I wonder which other surprises it might hold? A racetrack for go-karts? A petting zoo on the third floor? Or ghosts in the attic?”

Arthur looked sternly at him. “I’ve been living here for about 200 years, I’ve never seen a single ghost.”

Merlin blinked and then they burst out laughing at the same time. “Come here, you ghost, let me kiss you some more.”

Arthur had no objections.

+++

Merlin stretched and smiled when he woke up. This must have been a dream. But no, he was still in Camelot Mansion, so it was most likely that Arthur had walked him to his door the previous night and after some intense good-night-kissing had let him go. Merlin wouldn’t have minded letting him into his room and spent the night with him, but it was refreshing that men with manners still existed. 

He knew that he was just a little pass-time for Arthur, a distraction from the gloomy December days and that whatever they had would end the moment he stepped out the door into the real world again. He didn’t mind. Everything that had happened was too fantastic to be real anyway, so he would make the most out of it and go back to his real life the moment his car issues were fixed. Or sooner, if Percy decided he could come and get him. 

The swim the day before had been a great start into the day, so Merlin decided to repeat it. This time, he didn’t have to ask for directions and knew he didn’t have to take the towels from his room to the pool as there were stacks of fluffy towels everywhere. 

Diving in, Merlin enjoyed the water greeting him like an old friend. When he was back home, he needed to find a way to go swimming in winter, too, he missed it. He tried a few different styles of swimming, pleased that his free style still worked the way he was used to it and a bit disappointed that his backstroke seemed to be a bit rusty. He needed to work on that. 

Swimming lap after lap, Merlin finally came up for air when he felt that he wasn’t alone in the water anymore.

“Good morning.” Arthur smiled from the other end of the pool, making his way over. 

“Morning!” Merlin couldn’t keep the grin off of his face. Obviously, Arthur didn’t regret the day before as he pressed a quick kiss on his lips when he was close enough. 

“Mm…chlorine…” He mumbled.

Merlin laughed. “What else would I taste of after all those laps?”

“You worked out really hard already?”

Shrugging, Merlin stole another quick kiss. “Work-out always sounds of hard work. That’s no fun.”

“And you’re all about fun?” Arthur teased.

“Not necessarily, but when it comes to sports…yes.”

Arthur let go of him. “You’re saying, you’re not competitive at all?”

Glancing to the other end of the pool, a smirk showed on Merlin’s face. “There and back. Who finishes last is a lame duck!” With that, he already started into that direction.

“Hey, that’s….!” Arthur apparently knew that he was only losing time when he protested and followed Merlin. 

Merlin’s lead was too big already, Arthur couldn’t catch him and came up for air again long after Merlin had touched the end of the pool they started from. It was probably not that long, but for a little competition, it clearly showed who was the faster swimmer. 

“I won.” Merlin grinned, fully well knowing that it hadn’t been a fair race with him starting a lot sooner than Arthur even knew what was going to happen.

Arthur grinned back and ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up in all directions. “Looks like it.”

“So…what does the winner get?”

Stepping close, Arthur reached for Merlin. “What does the winner want?”

Merlin dove in and kissed Arthur thoroughly. That would be his prize and he just claimed it, but he didn’t have the feeling that Arthur minded at all. Kissing Arthur was fantastic and that they were in the pool where anyone could step in at any second was exciting. Then again, who would step in? It was Arthur’s pool. 

Wrapping his arms around Merlin, Arthur pulled him closer and kissed back like they had never done anything else. Merlin enjoyed the warm, wet skin against his and the gentle splashing of the water around them. It was as if they had done this a million times before and it was still brand new and thrilling. He had never felt anything like this with anyone before. 

He felt his dick fill and for a quick moment, he wondered if Arthur would mind, but he felt a matching hardness when Arthur’s hips bucked against him. Merlin broke the kiss. “You got something here?”

A slight blush showed on Arthur’s face. “Yes.”

When Arthur didn’t move, Merlin looked at him questioningly. “Can you get it?”

Arthur nuzzled into his neck and whispered, “Don’t want to let go of you.”

Chuckling, Merlin maneuvered them over to the stairs as they made their way, kissing and giggling out of the water. Too bad. Merlin had never had sex in a pool, so he had been curious about it. But it was probably a lot better to not have a first time with someone in the water, which definitely didn’t work as lubricant. 

Leading him to a small area with lounge chairs, Arthur reached for a towel and then turned around. Instead of just handing him the towel, he started to gently dry Merlin’s shoulders and arms and then went on to his chest. 

Merlin’s breath caught. Nobody had ever done anything remotely similar like that to him before and it was more erotic as if they had stripped naked and fallen all over each other right away. “Arthur…”

Arthur let him take the towel out of his hand and didn’t protest when Merlin turned him around, so he could gently dab his back dry, kissing the skin as he went, slowly moving downwards. When Merlin was on his knees, he caressed the skin above Arthur’s swim trunks. He didn’t just want to yank them down without finding out if it was alright for Arthur. But Arthur even helped him pushing the wet garment down and leaned forward, bracing himself with his hands on a chair. 

He couldn’t help the little sound that escaped his throat when he saw Arthur’s naked butt. It was the most perfect arse he had ever seen, so he leaned in, caressed it with the fluffy towel and then kissed the dried parts. 

“Merlin…” Arthur was already breathing faster. 

Pulling back a bit, Merlin waited. Had he read the signs right? 

“What are you waiting for?” 

Alright, then he did read them right and Arthur wanted this just the way he did. He went back to kissing and caressing Arthur’s arse, gently dabbing his balls dry and teasing them in the process. He was slowly preparing Arthur with his tongue. “Lube?” He whispered against Arthur’s skin. 

Merlin had no idea where Arthur got the lube from, but all of a sudden it was there and Merlin used it deliberately. He wouldn’t hurt Arthur, no matter how much he urged him on. 

Finally, he scrambled up.

“Merlin?” Arthur was all out of breath and hoarse. 

“Condoms?”

“Oh…”

A condom found its way into his hand just like the lube and Merlin didn’t waste time wondering why Arthur had stored these things here by the pool. It wasn’t important. He rolled the rubber on and lubed it up even more. “Ready?” He whispered and when Arthur nodded, he slowly pushed in. 

Closing his eyes, he felt Arthur’s body grip him, Merlin stopped for a moment and tried to even out his breath. If he wasn’t careful, he would come right there and then. Arthur was so hot and keen and the situation totally crazy and exciting. 

When Arthur pushed back against him and groaned loudly, Merlin grabbed his waist and tried to find a rhythm. He knew they didn’t have time for drawing things out, they both were close and wanted to come. After a few hard pushes, Merlin bit his lower lip. “Arthur…”

“Yes! YES!”

Slamming in one last time, Merlin stilled and let his orgasm take over. He had half the mind to reach around and stroke Arthur’s length, so he followed him suit. 

With shaking legs, Merlin pulled out and discarded of the condom while Arthur just slumped onto the large lounge chair and stretched with a lazy grin on his face. 

“Come here,” he demanded. 

Merlin scrambled next to him and nuzzled into his neck. “That was…”

“Indeed.” Arthur laughed. 

+++

They lazed around for the rest of the morning, relaxing by the pool, Arthur calling to have a light breakfast brought down, which was the most decadent thing Merlin had seen so far. He had heard of drinks being brought to the pool, but having an entire breakfast at the little sitting area with a great view over the park behind the house? That was almost too much. 

When they finally decided to get dressed, Merlin made his way back to the room with the cozy fireplace. They had only parted with a ‘see you in a few’ without specifying where, but it was where he found Arthur.

“I thought…”

Oh, had Arthur changed his mind? Merlin looked at him, unsure what this did to him. His mind knew that it would be alright, they only knew each other for two days, but he was feeling a lot more for this man already than he should in mere 48 hours. 

“…that I still owe you a tour of the house. Maybe we will encounter a few ghosts in the attic?”

Relief rushed through Merlin and a wide smile showed on his face. “Let’s go. I’ve always wanted to meet a ghost.”

“You’re not afraid?” Arthur pouted theatrically. “I had hoped to be able to rescue you from it and then…” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Get a reward?”

Merlin laughed and kissed the pout. It took them a while to be done and to let go of each other enough so they could start the tour.

It wasn’t that Arthur was a bad tour guide. He knew a lot about this old mansion and had funny anecdotes and stories about ancient people staring at them from paintings or a rather ugly statue at the end of a hallway. Merlin was just slightly distracted once in a while when Arthur climbed the stairs in front of him, thereby giving him a good view of his arse. 

“You still with me?” Arthur asked when he noticed that Merlin had zoned.

“Oh…er…sorry….something about an ancestor of yours?” Merlin blushed slightly and shrugged apologetically. 

“Alright, the tour took too long already, we’re going up to the attic now!” Arthur declared. 

“Watch out, ghosts, here we come!” Merlin chuckled and followed.

“I haven’t been here in ages,” Arthur looked around when they finally had reached the door at the top of the stairs. 

Merlin was almost a bit disappointed. Aside from the sheer size which matched the house, this looked like every other attic he’d ever been in. Not that he had a habit of roaming people’s attics when he was at their place. There were boxes, some labelled, some not, cobwebs and lots of dust. “You could remodel it and use it as an additional room. A studio for…I don’t know….painting or writing or something.”

Arthur stopped and looked at him. “I just dragged you through the house and you saw more rooms than a person could possibly want. What would I need yet another room for?”

Chuckling, Merlin nodded. “You’re right, it was just an idea.”

“Are you a painter?”

“Sometimes, I play around with acrylic colours, maybe that’s where the idea came from.” Merlin smiled. 

“You have to show me your paintings one day.”

“Ah,” Merlin made a gesture, “They’re not that good. It’s just a hobby.” Which he had only started a few weeks back but he already run out of space to work in. His tiny kitchen was probably not the best place. 

“Still.” Arthur insisted and then looked around. “Have you seen everything you wanted to see up here?”

“Ghosts?” Merlin grinned.

Arthur shook his head and shrugged. “No ghosts.” Then he added. “Sorry.”

“Too bad. Oh well, let’s go back down.”

Arthur led the way down the staircase but then took a turn to the right when Merlin could have sworn they had come here from the other direction. 

“Where are we going now?”

“I need to show you one more room.” Arthur grinned and when he reached the door he wanted to go to, he opened it up and made a grand gesture for Merlin to step in.

First, Merlin looked around curiously, then he laughed. “Your bedroom? Should have known we would end up here.”

Arthur worried his lower lip with his teeth. “Do you…do you mind? I mean, we can still go back to one of the other rooms and read or watch TV or whatever you like. I don’t want to push myself on you, but I had the feeling…”

Before he could finish the sentence, Merlin had grabbed him and together they fell onto the big, luxurious bed.

+++

They spent most of the day in bed and Merlin loved every second. It almost felt like Arthur was made for him. He found a lot of sensitive spots on Arthur’s body and made a game out of pulling him close to the edge only to distract him otherwise again. 

Arthur made a sound as they lay, Arthur’s head on his shoulder.

“What?”

“You’re going to be the death of me.”

“And…that’s a bad thing?”

Arthur lifted his head and grinned at him. “No, definitely not.”

It felt good lying here with Arthur. Sometimes, when he was with someone, things got awkward afterwards and he only tried to find a way to get out. He felt nothing of that sort now, it was more like he could imagine staying forever. Which was nonsense, they had merely just met and what would Arthur want from a poor librarian?

“Merlin?”

“Hm?”

It was already getting dark outside, but they didn’t bother switching on any lights. 

“You know that when I go to London, I…it’s only a little detour to Ealdor.”

Merlin pulled back a bit, so he could look at Arthur a bit better. “You’re saying…?”

Arthur rolled onto his back and looked up at the ceiling. “It was just a thought.”

“You’re welcome to stop by any time.” Merlin hoped this didn’t sound too weird. 

“And it’s not that far from here either…”

Now Merlin laughed. “Come on, say what you want to say.”

Arthur didn’t look at him. “That’s not easy…”

“It almost sounds as if you want to see me again?”

Turning his head to look at him, Arthur nodded. “Yes. It’s like…I can’t explain…there’s something about you…”

“You’ve only known me for a bit more than two days.”

“Oh.” Arthur looked back at the ceiling. “Alright.”

“No! No, that doesn’t mean I don’t want to see you. I would love to. I’m just wondering…” Merlin worried his lower lip.

Arthur turned and got up on one elbow. “What?”

“I mean…you’re some prince or something and I’m…just a poor boy from a small town. How’s that supposed to work?”

Shrugging, Arthur smiled carefully. “I don’t know…but….we could try to find out?”

Merlin couldn’t help but smiling back. He had shoved the thought that he would probably never see Arthur again after this weekend far away as it had caused too many weird feelings. His smile became radiant. He didn’t have to worry about that now. Leaning over, Merlin kissed Arthur deeply. 

“I take that as a yes,” Arthur mumbled against his lips when they broke for air.

Merlin nodded.

+++

The snow on the ground had melted and it was just an ordinary December Monday morning, cold and grey, but Merlin didn’t feel any of it. The car people had called and confirmed that they had towed his car to fix it and Percy had announced that he would come to Camelot Mansion to rescue him from the creepy old Earl that lived there. Before Merlin could object and tell him that Arthur was by no means a creepy old Earl, but actually a very nice young Earl that he had quite the crush on, Percy had already hung up and gotten into his car. 

Merlin was pretty sure that Percy would notice his mistake as he still stood in the doorway with the Earl, his arms around his neck and giving the staff probably a bit too much of a show as they were kissing good-bye. 

“So…” Arthur still held his hand as they parted. “I’m going to call you?”

Chuckling, Merlin leaned his forehead against Arthur’s shoulder. “You know what?”

“Hm?”

“Didn’t you say you are in London tomorrow?”

“Yes?”

“How about…” Merlin grinned. “I’ll make us something for dinner and we can decorate my place?”

Arthur leaned in for another quick kiss. “Sounds like a good plan.”


End file.
